Sunday, 28 February 2016

Nemesis Coaching - 4 Weeks In

Some of you will be aware that I recently won 6 months coaching with Nemesis PT. Today marks 4 weeks of online coaching, and also 4 weeks of not binge eating! When I started my plan I had high hopes of changing my body through hard work and good nutrition, but I never fully expected to change my eating habits. I've been stuck in this cycle of binge, guilt, be good, binge for about 2 years now so I really just thought of it as something I'd unwittingly do for the rest of my life. Lets not get ahead of myself - it has only been 4 weeks - but it feels like an accomplishment.

When Sharon sent me my macros for week 1 I was pretty pleased - over 2000 calories, including a generous 250g carb allowance! For someone who was trying and failing to stick to 1400 calories (increased by myself from 1200, slowly in fear of gaining weight!) it felt like Christmas day! Despite warnings from people that I'd probably gain weight, I embraced the increased volume of food and actually lost 2lb that first week! I haven't been hungry at all since starting the plan and that's probably the reason I've managed to stick to it so well - I'm not looking for food at the end of the day and shoving 2 packs of M&Ms, 4 slices of toast and half a box of cereal down my throat! Instead of struggling to keep carbs/fat low, I was actually struggling to get enough! Little things like buying seeded loaf instead of whichever bread had the lowest grams of fat per slice and actually allowing myself to have butter on said bread have felt like a right treat!

Sharon reduced my carbs at the start of week 4 but by a barely noticable amount. No difference to my hunger levels! However I feel like my progress has stalled this week. I woke up with a sore neck at the start of the week and could barely move my head. It felt like a pulled muscle but I'm not sure if I just slept funny or what. It was agony anyway and I haven't managed to train since Tuesday from the pain and fear of making it worse. I was worried about undoing all my progress as I'm not doing anything to burn off all those carbs but I trusted my coach's advice and have done my best to keep my macros the same, despite feeling fat and fed up! To top it all off my time of the month made an appearance but maybe that accounts for the bloated, fat feeling.

I got a shock when I compared this weeks photos with my earlier ones - you can visibly see the difference in these photos of my back! My measurements have been coming down each week and my clothes have felt a little looser but I hadn't actually noticed any change in the mirror.

I've really enjoyed the training Lainey has given me too. Going from a basic council gym to a much larger, better equipped one has made all the difference. I was reluctant at first as I didn't want to spend extra money but I think it's worth it. I have been given a mix of push, pull and leg days, along with a cardio session and rest day, with a strength/hypertrophy cycle. I like that each day is different - I'm not repeating the same exercises in the same week. I've spent a lot of time on the Bodybuilding website this month trying to figure out what I'm meant to be doing but I'm getting used to it all! One of my aims is to increase the weight I can lift at each session and I think I'm doing ok so far. Lainey says she's happy with it anyway!

I like the fact that I have to check in with my coaches every week. Not only is it an opportunity for me to look back and assess the week but it means that I'm held accountable and getting feedback from another perspective. I'm conscious of being as open and honest as possible to achieve the best possible results from this plan. I'm a firm believer that you get out what you put in and I am determined to make the most of these 6 months with Nemesis!